Christ before Pilate, from The Passion
Medium
Engraving on ivory laid paper
Dimensions
Plate: 20.2 × 13.4 cm (8 × 5 5/16 in.); sheet: 21.1 × 14.4 cm (8 5/16 × 5 11/16 in.)
Classification
engraving
Department
Prints and Drawings
Museum
Art Institute of Chicago
Accession Number
268188
Art Historical Context
In the late 16th century, engraver Hendrick Goltzius created *Christ before Pilate*, one of seven masterful plates from his series *The Passion* (1596). This scene captures the biblical moment from the Gospel of John, where Jesus stands trial before Pontius Pilate amid a tense crowd. Goltzius, a leading figure in Northern Mannerism, drew inspiration from earlier works by Albrecht Dürer and Lucas van Leyden, blending intricate line work with dramatic chiaroscuro to evoke deep emotional intensity. Produced during a time of religious upheaval in the Netherlands, such engravings served as devotion...
About the Artist
Hendrick Goltzius · 1558–1617
Hendrick Goltzius (1558–1617) was the most celebrated engraver of the Northern Renaissance and a pivotal figure in Dutch Mannerism. Born near the German-Dutch border, Goltzius transformed printmaking into a virtuoso art form through his revolutionary 'swelling line' technique, where the burin was manipulated to create lines of varying thickness that produced unprecedented tonal effects and three-d...